Love From the Smallest Chance
by Little Pastry
Summary: Roxas, second year in high school, quiet teen and silent observer. His watching is interrupted by Axel, a charming-yet-cocky third year. Following an encounter after school, friendship blooms... but feelings are changing. AU, AkuRoku, Complete
1. Bandaged Beauties

**A/N:** Welcome welcome one and all, to the unveiling of my new story, which will feature _actual AkuRoku man lovins!_ Nothing explicit, but definitely some cute and some dramatic moments. Curious? Read ahead for the beginning :3

* * *

Why, hello. I suppose you're wondering who the quaint hero of our story will be. In a nutshell he is Roxas Nakano, second year in high school, reserved teen and silent observer.

Roxas had a few good friends, but mostly he was on the outside. He didn't mind so much; it let him watch other people interact. A favorite subject of his to watch was Axel Shirai. He had magnetism around him that attracted many people, and as such, more drama than most others. This girl or that girl was always hanging around him, and although Roxas hadn't seen Axel do anything with any of them, he assumed that they were just the female flavor of the week.

There were occasional rumors about Axel's sexuality: some said he was gay, others argued his straightness, others assumed that he batted for both teams, and others yet didn't understand why which sex someone preferred to get jiggy with mattered so damn much. Roxas was part of the last group. He'd always assumed himself straight, but considering that he hadn't felt much of anything for anyone yet he wasn't sure. But someone else's sexuality? It didn't matter, unless that person was one who he had feelings for.

It was the middle of lunch, and Roxas was, once again, watching others. His eyes were currently focused on Axel and his group of friends. They all had some odd quirk about them: one had a really weird hairstyle that was the freak bastard-child of a Mohawk and a mullet (from here on out called a_ mullhawk_), but surprisingly he seemed to make it look nice; others had weird colors of hair, such as blue and pink -- and they were men; and one even had silver hair and an odd tan that made him look very peculiar.

As Roxas watched the group, Axel then did something very odd, and he'd never done it before: he noticed. His eyes locked with Roxas's, and then he smiled, giving a small wave. This caused Roxas to frown. People weren't supposed to notice his watching! He was too sneaky for that. But, he supposed, he could have been careless this time. "Weird..." he muttered before quickly turning his attention to a group of giggling girls nearby.

Later in the school day, Roxas was exchanging books. He stuffed what he didn't need into his locker, exchanging it for what he did, and locked things up before turning about-face and unexpectedly colliding with a tall, thin being. "Hey, watch it," he spat out, pushing himself away from whomever he'd walked into. Who was it, anyway?

"Real serpent's tongue you got there, Blondie." That red hair, that "I'm-a-cocky-bastard-now-worship-me" attitude... yup, that was Axel Shirai.

"What do you want?" Roxas said, taking the hostility off his voice, but adding a healthy dose of suspicion.

"Nothing, my locker's over here. Thought I'd introduce myself."

"Well, get on with it," Roxas said with an expectant smirk on his face.

"Fine. Name's Axel Shirai, got it memorized?" He held out his hand to shake, and Roxas took it. He didn't introduce himself, though, as he didn't get a chance. The bell rang, signifying that the next class was close. "Ah, too bad. Catch you later, Blondie." He grinned and waved, leaving Roxas to ponder his chance encounter.

"...'Blondie'?" he muttered incredulously. "God, I hate that nickname already."

**xxx xxx xxx**

Ah, schoolwork: it was the bane of many a child and teenager still in school. Roxas didn't mind it much, but he did wish for more free time. Outside, the sky was darkening. The sun had nearly set and a small strip of red, hovering parallel to the horizon, was all that could be seen.

With parents out, sibling visiting friends and homework being boring, Roxas couldn't help but let his gaze wander from his work to the window, and he found himself staring at any people who happened to pass. One of them was strangely familiar, and had fiery red hair... "Axel?" Roxas asked himself. He watched for a moment more. The blond noticed the other's pace was particularly slow, and he seemed to be gripping his arm oddly. _Something is wrong_, Roxas's gut told him. In a few short moments, he moved to the front door, opened it and peeked out towards the other male, who pressed a bare hand to his face, and as it came away his fingers looked wet with a dark liquid.

Before he could consider any awkwardness or odd emotions that would get in the way, Roxas moved outside and called out to Axel, carefully shutting the door behind him. "Is that you, Axel?" There was curiosity in his voice, but also an underlying concern. It caused the other male to look up in surprise. The under-eye tattoos that were visible confirmed his identity as Axel. The redhead obviously hadn't expected anyone to notice him at this point, let alone a short blond whom he'd only run into a few times. Something about the situation amused him, and his lips curved upwards in a smirk as his confident air immediately was put on.

"Hey there Blondie," he said, waving his good arm smoothly. "How's life?" There was a slight smudge of what Roxas assumed to be blood on Axel's chin and lip, and on the hand he waved with. Obviously something had happened, and Axel didn't seem to be open to sharing.

"Oh, it's been pretty good," Roxas said, feigning ignorance and walking down nearer to Axel, bare feet stepping softly on the rough sidewalk. When he was just a few feet away from the obviously injured teen, his eyes flicked over where he assumed the wounds to be. Axel had a purple mark appearing around his eye, and his bad arm was hanging limply at his side. Though his arms were covered by a black hoodie, this inactivity was a clear sign. Normally Axel gestured with both arms frequently.

"Not like yours, I presume." He crossed his arms and his eyebrows met in a frown. "You're in pretty bad shape," he commented, nodding his head at Axel's black eye.

Axel's eyelids widened with some unknown emotion before returning to their normal position. He shrugged. "Nah, this is n--" He was about to say 'this is nothing,' but Roxas had moved closer while he wasn't paying attention and grabbed Axel's arm, turning up upwards and pulling the sleeve of the hoodie down. "Ahh--" Axel's features twisted slightly in a grimace of pain. Roxas's eyes widened at the sight.

His forearm was covered in many small red cuts, scrapes and deep purple bruises. His hand was no better off; it was in similar condition.

"You were saying?" Roxas said his voice a dry tone. "Obviously this is _something_."

Axel half coughed, half laughed. He pulled his arm away, grunting quietly at the pain. "Yeah, but what I do ain't your business, got it memorized?" Ah, his catchphrase. Roxas had heard him say it occasionally, and here it was, popping up again.

"Fine, fine. If you want to keep it secret, whatever," he snapped. Then his tone softened just slightly. "But you're beat up, obviously. Come in and let me clean you up."

It was less of a request or suggestion than it was an order. This short, unassuming blond was ordering around _Axel Shirai?_ The situation was quite odd, but Axel was in an odd mood. He grinned, despite Roxas's attitude and his arm. "Sure, kid." After all, a nice seat and some antiseptic sounded just fine right about now.

"Come on, then." Roxas turned on his heel and made his way back inside as Axel walked behind him, being slightly gentle on one foot. Roxas didn't notice this until he watched Axel walk inside. "Take your shoes off; my mom likes to keep the floors clean." As his redheaded acquaintance removed his black sneakers, Roxas could see that his foot, too, had bruises, but they didn't look too bad.

He led Axel to the bathroom and instructed him to sit on the toilet before grabbing some hydrogen peroxide and a washrag. After putting some on the rag he held his hand out and Axel put his arm in it without hesitation. Still, it stung, and he took in a sharp breath as it made contact with the numerous injuries. "Tch, be careful with that thing," he half-growled.

Roxas smirked at Axel's comment and continued to clean. "Be thankful I'm even helping you. I have no reason to." As he said these words, he tried to understand exactly why he'd cared to do this in the first place. _Must be leftover nursing instincts from when I used to help Sora,_ he mused. Sora was his twin brother, younger by only a few minutes physically, but he was innocent and childish enough to seem younger by a few years. Roxas had always acted as a voice of reason and responsibility, and often patched up his younger brother's cuts and bruises.

"So what did you do to yourself to get like this, anyway?" Roxas's curiosity could not and would not be sated until he knew how Axel managed to put himself into this state. "It looks like a couple of people just decided to grab you and beat the crap out of you."

Axel snorted and looked away. "You're not far from the truth, Blondie." Obviously his pride had been wounded; that was a much deeper wound than the physical ones he had. "Some guys didn't like the look of me, got it memorized?"

"That's no reason to beat someone up." Roxas frowned. He rinsed the rag out and began the process again, gently cleansing the remainder of Axel's cuts. He had a sneaking suspicion that Axel was still hiding the truth.

Axel sighed. "Yeah, well, some people think it is." He was about to continue when he heard a gasp from Roxas. "What? What is it now?"

"It... your arm... your elbow has a big gash on it." He looked into Axel's eyes, conveying that this was serious. "It's all bruised around it too. Seriously, Axel, what happened?"

An annoyed sigh escaped Axel once again. "Fine, I'll spill. You know those rumors that go around about if I like to screw guys, right?" Roxas pretended to look as if he didn't know anything about it. "Don't lie, Blondie. Everybody knows, got it memorized? Anyway, around four guys decided to jump me when I was coming home." He sent a glance towards his elbow. "I guess I got that when they threw me into that ditch." He hissed as Roxas applied the rag doused with what Axel would now refer to as _liquid pain_.

"...that must have sucked," Roxas offered, unable to think of something that would fit the situation. Truthfully, he'd never come across such a situation such as this one. He had no words for Axel. But what would he use them for, to make Axel feel better? Being beaten just for being homosexual --when you probably weren't even gay-- wasn't something that could be taken away with a comforting word or two.

Axel's green eyes stared into as Roxas's blue ones as the blond rinsed the rag again and began cleaning up Axel's face. "Yeah," he said, "but wounds heal."

Roxas paused at the sudden eye contact, but continued his clean-up. "Hey, you never did catch my name." Yes, Roxas will take Quick Topic Change for five-hundred, please!

"Nah, I never did..." Axel didn't sound bothered by it, but he did seem interested on what Roxas's name happened to be.

"It's Roxas Nakano."

"Nice to meetcha, Roxie."

"Call me that ever again and I'll pour this bottle of hydrogen peroxide in your eye."

Axel laughed at this. "You got spirit, Blondie."

"I told you, my name is _Roxas_. Not Roxie. Not Blondie."

"What, no nicknames?"

Roxas smirked, but didn't answer. He did feel an odd stirring inside himself, and knew that he had quickly grown to like this Axel.

* * *

**A/N:** Love-progress happens next chapter. Right now all they are is friends. Little do they know my hand will warp their views, and fluff will bloom, fu fu fu. Now, leave a review telling me what you thought!


	2. Ever Clear Memory

**A/N:** Oh my GOD I am so sorry this is so late. I just... the river of inspiration went totally dry for a while there. I'd be surprised if any of the original people who watched/reviewed/were interested in this story were still around. If you are, I give you many thanks! And hugs! And apologies all around! D: So, um, for anybody who's reading this, here's the second chapter. Hope you like it.

Thanks to all who reviewed the first chapter, as a side note. I love all of you guys. ;-;

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Many teenagers enjoyed the idea of a party. Invite some friends, talk and dance all night, maybe sneak a couple of drinks-- it was all in good fun anyway. Roxas was an exception to this generalization. He'd only been to one party before, and that was rather much of a dud. Normally he wouldn't even be thinking about it unless someone brought it up.

It was during lunch on a Friday, some weeks after the incident at Roxas's house that Axel did.

"So, Roxas, what do you think about parties?"

Roxas looked away from the window that had been keeping his attention, instead focusing on the previously quiet redhead.

"Um... they're loud, and stuffy. Why do you ask?"

Axel simply grinned. "Not a fan? Well, that can all change tonight. There's a party at one of my friends' houses." He leaned forward onto the table. "I think you should come."

Instinctively, Roxas wanted to disagree. But instead of outright refusal of Axel's proposal, he merely questioned it with, "Why?"

"Why?" Axel scoffed. "Why _not_, more like. Parties are a ton of fun."

Roxas rolled his eyes, but couldn't hold back a small smile. "And whether or not I go, you're going, right...?" Axel nodded in response, leaning his chin on his hand.

Roxas stirred around his food for a minute or so, considering the offer. He finally looked up at Axel, who had a curious expression on his face. "Well?"

"Well..." Roxas was going to say no, but as he looked into Axel's eyes, something just made him want to say _yes._ It was weird, inexplicable, and totally unexpected. Roxas just sighed, a resigned smile now on his face.

"Sure, Axel, I guess I'll come." He was rewarded with Axel grinning his Cheshire Cat grin and pumping his fist.

"Excellent! Now, it's gonna start right about seven; should I come pick you up?"

Roxas shrugged. "Seeing as I don't know where this friend of yours lives--" _or even who he or she is,_ he internally interjected, "--it'd probably be for the best if you did. Come by my house at six-thirty."

Axel nodded. Roxas noted that he looked excited; but then, parties were exciting things!

**xxx xxx xxx**

Oddly enough, Roxas hadn't seen Axel after lunch. Well, he'd glimpsed him during gym and passing through the halls, but he hadn't actually addressed him once more. Roxas saw him talking with a busty brunette and immediately felt some unidentified emotion. Well, he _sort of_ knew what the emotion was -- but he really didn't want to address it at this time. There was a new girl in art class (the last class of the day, incidentally) who he'd been assigned to as a partner, so he didn't really have time to dwell on it.

Her name was Naminé, it seemed, and she was a very talented artist. Her drawings were well-proportioned and realistic. Her shy and quiet nature reminded Roxas of his own -- reserved, ever-observing, usually on the outside of events. He felt some connection to her in this sense. He and she talked about things besides art class -- where she'd lived, why she'd suddenly transferred (her father's work, apparently), their favorite books -- many things.

And so it was that school ended and Roxas gathered his things from his locker. Axel found him once more and popped up behind him.

"Hey there Roxas," he said smoothly, leaning against the locker and facing Roxas. "Just wanted to make sure you hadn't forgotten about the party."

Roxas gave a sarcastic smile but didn't look at Axel. "Oh, _of course_ I'd forgotten," he replied. "Don't _you_ forget where I live, okay?"

Axel laughed. How could he forget, really? "Oh, I won't. I gotta go, but be ready by six-thirty," here, Axel leaned in close to Roxas, "because I do not like to be kept waiting." He lingered for a scant moment, then grinned and walked off with a wave. Roxas was left feeling slightly unsettled. That _tone_ he had used... something felt different about it. Maybe it was just Axel being Axel, but... Roxas shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.

**xxx xxx xxx**

Roxas took his time walking home and admiring the trees. The leaves were just turning from green to different shades of red, gold and brown. They were nice to look at, but when they covered his lawn Roxas was sure his parents would have him rake it. Honestly, why couldn't they just do it themselves? Or even let it be a natural fertilizer? He kicked at a weed growing on his lawn as he walked up the path to his front door. His parents wouldn't like that one; Roxas's mother would probably kill it on her next gardening excursion.

He kicked off his shoes upon entry and set out to do his homework before the party tonight. If Axel was right, and he had a bangin' good time, then he probably wouldn't come home until late and as such he wanted to get to work on it.

But he couldn't find the energy to focus; his attention kept wandering out the window and into daydreams about one thing or another. But a common, recurring feature was the party that night. He thought of terrible outcomes, good outcomes, random murderers bursting in at random times, finding people getting it on in the closet... the last two just made him laugh and pay attention even less to his homework.

Soon, Sora came home and Roxas told him that he wouldn't be home for dinner that night; he had somewhere to be. Sora was immediately intrigued.

"Is it a date?" the brunet inquired, bouncing around Roxas rather like a puppy. "Who is she? Do I know her?"

Roxas smiled at Sora's babbling stream of questions and waved them away. "No, Sora, it's not a date. I'm just going to a party with a friend of mine."

Sora's eyes lit up even more. "A party! Who's the friend?"

"Uh... Axel Shirai."

Sora was silent, then burst out, "_Seriously?!_"

Roxas frowned. "Come on, me making friends isn't that hard to believe." Well, actually, it was; Roxas tended to not like people very much. "It's not that amazing. Close your mouth before it attracts flies."

Sora clamped his jaw shut and pouted. "Don't be so mean, Rox." The pout disappeared and a smile came onto his face. "You should tell Mom and Dad, too. They'll be happy for you. When do you leave?"

"Axel's coming to get me at six-thirty."

"Oh, okay." Sora walked off in the direction of the kitchen, calling back, "I'm gonna make a snack; haven't had anything since lunch. You want something?"

Roxas replied, "No," and that was that; Sora let him be. He still got the feeling that he was looking at him from somewhere. He heard the floor creak and whirled around to see...nothing. Nobody was there. Roxas raised an eyebrow and turned back around, with Sora hiding behind a piece of furniture, enjoying the spying element thoroughly.

At the crack of six-thirty, the doorbell rang. Roxas stood, calmly saying, "I'll get it." He opened the door to see Axel in a different outfit than he'd seen earlier; this one had him clad in black bell-bottom jeans with red trim on the bottom and a tight green tee-shirt that had different tints of green swirling across it diagonally. Roxas thought he looked good in it, but said nothing.

"You not ready yet, Roxas?" Axel inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I am. What makes you think I'm not?"

Axel clucked his tongue. "Roxas, you look like a _nerd_. That is not your party wear, is it?"

Roxas looked down at himself; he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt -- in a cool blue color -- and plain pants. "Yes, it is," Roxas replied, an indignant look on his face as his eyes locked with Axel.

Axel walked right in without removing his shoes and grabbed Roxas by the wrist and led him upstairs, giving a greeting to Mister and Missis Nakano.

"Axel, what are you-- doing--" Roxas protested verbally, but didn't struggle physically.

He kept walking until he came upon the room with a sign on it that displayed the name _Roxas_ in large, blocky letters. There was checkering around the edges of it; it was actually quite attractive. Axel opened the door without a word and let go of Roxas, walking to Roxas's closet.

"Axel! What are you _doing?_" Roxas repeated, more loudly this time. This time, he actually received a response.

"_I_ am finding an outfit for _you_, my not-so-fashion-forward companion."

Roxas frowned and crossed his arms. "No! Get out of my closet."

Axel merely chuckled and pulled out a shirt that Roxas hadn't seen since the day his mother had bought it for him: a band tee-shirt, white and with a vee-neck, and the logo across the front. "Oh, this is good." He tossed it at Roxas and commanded him to put it on. He continued searching for something else, something to compliment it.

Roxas refused, keeping the shirt in hand until Axel pulled out of his closet with some dark grey pants. They were ones that Roxas wore only on occasion, but apparently still had in there. Axel gave Roxas an odd expression.

"C'mere, Roxas." He extended a finger and made a 'come here' motion. Roxas hesitantly obeyed_._

"Try on that shirt I gave you," Axel told him. Roxas shook his head firmly. "Roxas, you'd look great in it." Roxas didn't move, and Axel resorted to a final tactic.

"Take your shirt off, or I'll do it myself." Roxas raised an eyebrow at this. What? Axel would _strip_ Roxas? The blond boy didn't believe it.

"No, I won't. Get out of my room and we'll go to the party." Roxas set his hands on his hips, having thrown the shirt onto his bed.

Axel merely grinned and reached forward and pulled Roxas's shirt up, exposing his stomach. Roxas was caught off guard and his shirt removed. He wrapped his arms around his chest. "A-Axel! What the _hell!?_"

Axel merely laughed and offered Roxas the white shirt. "Put _this_ on," he said innocently, amusement spread all over his face.

Roxas snatched it and put it on. It fit him well, and Axel nodded, happy with his work. "Okay, now the pants." Axel moved his hands to Roxas's zipper and Roxas slapped them away, saying, "I'll do it myself!" He knew full well that Axel wouldn't hesitate to remove him of his pants as well, should the need arise. That thought was unsettling.

Axel turned around after he had been ordered to do so by Roxas, and turned around to see Roxas looking irritated, but much more fashionable. "Now that's better," Axel purred. He then glanced at the watch on his wrist. "Ah! We're going to be late. Let's go, Roxas." He once again took Roxas by the wrist and led him out the door, saying goodbye to a very confused Mister and Missis Nakano.

Axel had come in his father's car; it was a small one, one of those little cruiser-types. Better gas mileage than an SUV, for sure, Roxas internally commented as he strapped himself in. The inside was clean and comfortable, too; this car got a lot of maintenance. "Does your dad like cars, Axel?"

Axel nodded, backing out of the driveway. "If I crash this, he'll skin me alive, I swear. He's crazy about this thing."

During the drive, Axel and Roxas talked about things. Random things, like Roxas's daydreams; Axel laughed at those as well. it wasn't long until they reached the house of the party. Cars were parked all around it; apparently this was the place to be on a Friday night. Axel parked as close as he could and the pair exited the car and entered the house.

Axel was immediately greeted by a group of people and pulled away, leaving Roxas to explore the party on his own. He discovered the punch bowl, and not knowing any better, sipped on a cup. It tasted weird, Roxas liked the taste; he quickly downed a second glass, but slowed down and found a quiet spot against the wall. He then slipped back into his watching tendency.

The atmosphere of the party was one Roxas had never come across before: the loud music blasting every corner of the room, the mass of bodies moving to the rhythm, the odd stuffy feeling of breathing breath that's been breathed by at least ten people before you. He took all of this in, leaning against the wall, cup of punch in one hand and the other hand in his pocket. He could see Axel shaking his hips to some fast-paced song that Roxas couldn't identify. He had to admit, Axel could really move.

His attention wandered. A group of teen-aged girls, all rather scantily-clad, were dancing with some guys of similar age...that _was_ dancing, right? They weren't just screwing on the dance floor? A flush appeared on Roxas's cheeks at the notion and he tore his gaze away. A figure now approaching the blond drew it.

"Rox, don't tell me I dragged you all the way here so you can just sit around watching." Axel crossed his arms, an expectant smirk upon his face.

"I...I'm just not much of a dancer," Roxas muttered, shrugging. His eyes wandered to his punch as he swirled it around in the paper cup.

"Then I'll teach you." He then pointed to the drink in Roxas's hand. "Drink that, or ditch it. Punch doesn't belong on the dance floor."

Roxas hesitated for a moment, thoughts running through his head a mile a minute. Why did he come here if he wasn't going to dance? Why did he come here at all? He didn't even know the people hosting this thing. This music was much too loud-- Roxas frowned and shook his head to clear the conflicting thoughts. _You know what? Screw this indecision. I'm going to get on that dance floor._ He set the cup to his lips, downing its contents in a solid two gulps, then crumpled it, and tossed it aside.

Axel grinned widely as he uncrossed his arms. "Now that's more like it," he purred, fingers closing over Roxas's wrist and leading him onto the dance floor.

A new song began to play, one with a strong beat and a steady, catchy tune. Roxas began dancing shyly; he was unused to this sort of thing.

"Ah, c'mon, Rox, you can do better," Axel said in a teasing tone. He laid his hands on Roxas hips and pulled the blond in close, leading him. The flush that had abandoned Roxas minutes before came back in full force.

Still, he didn't argue. Axel was an excellent teacher, and as the minutes wore on the smaller male began to feel pleasantly buzzed. There was probably something in the drink, and having that third couldn't have helped... but Roxas only vaguely recognized these facts. He was too in-the-moment to notice much more than all that was going on around him. It was all just so much, an assault on his senses-- hearing the music, seeing so much motion around him (not to mention Axel in a shirt that seemed just a tad too small for him), an oddly sweet smell on the air, feeling Axel's body pressing against his own, tasting those lips that had suddenly and insistently pressed against his own...

Wait, lips...? Roxas forced himself to focus.

Axel was kissing him.

And strangely enough, Roxas didn't object. Instead, he closed his eyes and returned the kiss with pleasure.

That was, until he completely wrapped his still-fogged mind around the concept of him kissing another guy... particularly _Axel_. As soon as he did, his eyes flew wide open and he pulled away. "I...that...you..." His face turned from flushed to absolutely beet-red. He sent one more glance to Axel, who simply looked very confused, before locating the nearest door.

Then, heart beating madly, he started to run for the door. He vaguely heard Axel call his name, but paid no mind to it and continued to dash for the exit.

In moments he was outside, breathing fresh, clean air and stumbling down the stairs. All the movement had made his head spin, and Roxas fell on his hands and knees, eyes shut tight and breathing hard.

Thoughts were running through his head at lightning speed, but the overriding theme was _what the hell just happened._

He felt a hand on his shoulder and made a squawking noise before throwing himself forward and doing a half-somersault and landing on his back, looking up into the face of someone who made his heart drop uncomfortably.

"Roxas, are you okay?" There was genuine concern in Axel's voice. He knelt down, a look of worry on his face. "You... just bolted."

"C-course I ran!" Roxas sputtered, squirming into a sitting position facing Axel. "You... you just..." He looked away, gathering his thoughts. "Y-Y'don't _kiss_ people outta th' blue like that..."

Axel smiled and seemed to relax. "That's it?" He reached out, at which point Roxas froze, but he simply trailed a finger along Roxas's jaw line. "You shouldn't be afraid of me. I won't hurt you." There was a look in his eyes, like he knew more than he was saying.

_Oh, of course he knows more than what he's saying -- he always does,_ Roxas thought. Silence fell like a curtain around the pair until Axel spoke up again.

He stood smoothly. There was no wobbliness or any unsteadiness in the way he moved; either he hadn't had anything to drink or he handled alcohol very well. Roxas wouldn't have been surprised if it was the latter. "Let's get you home."

"H-home? But it's so early..."

"Yeah, but you've had too much Everclear punch already. I don't want you getting so drunk you don't remember tonight." At 'Everclear punch' Roxas made an 'oh' sound. That was why his head felt weird; the punch was _spiked with alcohol_. He should have known! Roxas unsteadily got to his feet, but he couldn't stay on them and fell forward into Axel, who carefully kept Roxas standing.

"See, too much. C'mon, I'll drive you home." Roxas grumbled an incoherent protest, but going home actually didn't sound all that bad, so he allowed himself to be walked to Axel's car. When Axel tried to put the seatbelt on him he grumbled an indignant, "I can do it myself," and proceeded to do just that.

The ride to Roxas's home was quiet, because Roxas was still unsettled by the kiss. He was bothered by how much he had liked it, how Axel had done it without warning, and how public it was...people would surely talk about it! Or would they? Those girls and guys looked like they were screwing each other then and there, and nobody said a word. Maybe a kiss would be innocuous enough to go unnoticed.

Roxas didn't even notice when Axel pulled into Roxas's own driveway, he was so focused on his hands, which were picking at one another in his lap. He looked up when he felt the car stop, and got out of the car after a minute or so. His hands weren't exactly working as he would have liked them to.

Axel had also gotten out of the car and walked next to Roxas to make sure he didn't stumble. Roxas paused at the doorstep, thinking to maybe say something, but he didn't know what he would and reached for the doorknob when Axel's hand on his shoulder stopped him. Roxas looked up into Axel's green eyes. Axel said nothing, but leaned down and gave Roxas a small peck on the forehead. Roxas barely heard him say something in parting: "Don't forget that tonight happened."

He then let go of Roxas and walked down the stairs. Roxas watched him go to his car and drive off before heaving a small, confused sigh and going inside his house.

* * *

**A/N:** AAGDFAAGasgdfasa I don't know why that took so long to wriiiiite. Hopefully the next chapter won't take so long. Feel free to bother me about it in a review or through PMs. D: It should help me get off my lazy butt and actually DO something.

Also, Naminé's art skill has been upgraded tremendously from in-game. Her art skills are rather lacking in-game, if you've never seen screen shots/played the game.


	3. Bashful Bagels

**A/N: **Haha! I actually got this chapter out on time! Great for all who watch this story --thanks for adding this story to your lists, people!-- and great for me too. Thanks to all who reviewed? Only one person did actually. D: I have a message for him/her.

_To 321_ - Thanks for reviewing my story, if you're looking at this chapter! :3 If you've got an account you should log onto it and review so I can message you properly. D: Anyway I'm glad you enjoyed it. Here's the next one, super-fast, just like you asked! :'D

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Roxas groaned from underneath the covers. His head was pounding, and the light was much too bright. For a moment he wondered why he felt this way, but then he remembered last night's events…_all_ of them. His face lit up in a blush and he curled into a small ball. Axel! He was so weird last night, and then...Roxas shook his head and shut his eyes, trying to get back to sleep. But it was to no avail; now that he was awake he didn't really feel like sleeping more.

He sat up, hair in more disarray than usual, to find that he had pretty much just crashed in the clothes Axel dressed him in; a white band tee-shirt and dark gray pants. Roxas noticed with a displeased wrinkle of his nose that he hadn't taken his shoes off before he got into bed, and quickly removed them and his socks and stretched his toes. It felt good to have them out of the shoes, though the floor was a little chilly.

Sluggishly Roxas trudged out of his room and into the bathroom, looking for some headache medication; it felt like his head was going to have a damn baby. He tried to swallow one dry, but that was a bad idea -- he ended up coughing it back up into his hand. He tried again, with some water, and gained success.

He then traveled back into his room to change and threw on some random clothes from his closet before trotting downstairs feeling somewhat less tired and achy. As he entered the kitchen (which smelled of bagels) his eyes traveled to the clock -- 8:13 AM? It was that early? He sneered, wishing he would have slept in more.

"Oh, hey, Rox! Good morning." And there was Sora's voice, much too loud for this particular morning. Roxas winced and forced a smile.

"Hey, Sora. Mom or Dad up yet?"

Sora shook his head and opened the oven, making a distressed face before grabbing the hot pads that were situated next to the stove and pulling out some burned bagels on a pan. "Ah, I thought I'd _get_ them this time," he pouted. Roxas's household had no toaster, so they used the oven to toast bread; Sora, however, had never mastered the toasting process. His bagels, or toast slices, or any bread that he tried to toast always came out burnt.

Sora sighed and took a bite out of the bagel, and deemed it fit for consumption with a shrug of his shoulders. After swallowing the dry bread he asked with a grin, "So how was your party?"

Roxas sat at the kitchen table and folded his arms on it, setting his head down on them. "Don't wanna talk about it," he mumbled.

Sora looked with concern at Roxas. "Why not? S'not like something bad happened, right?"

_Oh good Lord,_ Roxas thought, _why can't you just set my kitchen on fire or something?_ He was not in the mood for Sora's questions or babble. "I just don't..." Roxas trailed off and lifted his head, leaning back in his chair. "I just don't wanna talk about it right now."

Sora made a pouty face, but then smiled. "Fine. You want some breakfast? I made...um..._tried_ to make bagels." Sora gestured towards the pan.

Roxas laughed. "Still can't get them right, I see. Sure." Roxas held out his hand and stood. "Gimme a knife so I can scrape the burned part off." Sora did as Roxas asked, and the blond stood over the pan, scraping burnt bits of bagel away. Sora just grabbed a bagel and began munching on it. Roxas never could understand how Sora could eat them dry when they were burned like this; it seemed utterly unappealing.

The two stood in silence for ten minutes or so as they ate their bread-y breakfast, and then Roxas finally broke the silence. "Sora, you've had crushes before... what does it feel like?"

Sora stopped chewing his mouthful of food, eyes wide. He gulped it down quickly and responded with a grin, "So you've finally got your eye on someone...?"

Roxas glared at Sora. "Just _tell_ me."

Sora's grin lessened to just a smile. "Well, when you're around the person you like your heart starts beating faster, and you just wanna...be near them, and sometimes you really wanna talk to them but you can't think of anything to say." He paused momentarily, thinking. _'An odd occurrence,'_ thought Roxas with a smile.

"Why do you ask?" He finally said, looking at Roxas with his big blue eyes. Roxas knew those eyes could cast a spell on certain people. He wondered for a moment if he had those same eyes, but then discounted those thoughts. His own blue eyes said that he knew more than he should at his age.

"Just wondering," Roxas replied nonchalantly, leaning against the counter.

"Pishaw," Sora scoffed. "You like someone. Tell me who!"

"Sora, no. I don't like someone."

"Yes you doooo. I can see it in your eyes."

"Sora, stop pressing the issue!"

"No! I won't stop asking until you tell me. It's that cute new girl in school, isn't it -- Nami-something?"

"Naminé. Her name is Naminé. And _no_ I don't like her!"

This went on for some time longer, until Roxas finally had enough.

"Fine, Sora! I'll tell you if you'll get off my back!" His tone was aggravated; Roxas enjoyed his privacy and didn't like being questioned like this. Sora grinned in response and folded his arms.

"It's Axel. I...I think I like him. Whenever I think about him my heart starts to beat like crazy and my face gets all warm and it just..." He frowned and rubbed at his eyes.

Sora remained quiet, fiddling with the butter knife in his fingers. After a moment he muttered, "So you're gay...?"

"Christ, Sora, I've never had a girlfriend and now I have a crush on a guy. What do you _think?_" This headache really wasn't helping with Roxas's irritation...it was making him crabbier than he should have been...

"Roxas, stop snapping at me!" Sora frowned. "You asked for my help, so don't yell at me!"

Roxas grumbled, but backed down with a mumbled "sorry".

"Thanks." Sora regained his more pleasant expression. "So, you like Axel. What's the problem?"

"The _problem?_ It's...not so much a problem...I just don't know. _Do_ I like him? And if I did, what would I do? And if I didn't, what would I do about last night?" He slapped his hand over his mouth, realizing he'd said too much.

"Last night...?" Sora was immediately suspicious, quickly piecing together Roxas's reluctance to speak about the part and this new information. "What happened last night?"

Roxas's face was now tinted a lovely pink color. "Axel, he... kissed me..." Those last two words were said very quietly.

"Wow, that's really..." Sora paused, thinking of the word. "Forward."

"I know. So what do I _do_?"

Sora shrugged. "Seems like he likes you. If you like him, ask him out, I guess. S'all there is to it, really..." Sora picked up another bagel and spread cream cheese over it, taking a large bite.

"Sora, _why_ are you not bothered by this?!" Roxas demanded in a hushed tone. "You're so nonchalant about it!"

"Well, Rox, you shouldn't get so upset..." Sora looked sheepish as he spoke through a mouthful of bagel. "It's not that bad."

Roxas snorted. "Not that bad, you say..."

Sora shook his head. "It really isn't. Just talk to him, thing's'll work out." Sora grabbed another bagel, spread cream cheese over it and walked out of the room to munch on bagels while most likely watching the Saturday morning cartoons.

Roxas sighed, rubbing his eyes. Despite having taken headache medication his head still pounded.

**xxx xxx xxx**

Roxas went back to bed shortly after his conversation with Sora, waking up a few hours later. He was still feeling restless and uneasy (though his headache was gone now); he wanted to talk to Axel, but he didn't know where the redhead lived or worked or what his phone number was. He rolled over in bed, frowning at the wall. What could he do? There was nobody he knew who could help...wait. Roxas's sat up and grabbed his cell phone that was sitting on his bedside table, dialing in the number of one of his good friends.

"Hello?" It was a rather pleasant, feminine voice on the phone: that of Olette Simmons.

"Hey, Olette." Roxas smiled.

"Oh! Roxas, hi! What's up?" Roxas could practically hear her smile.

"I was wondering, do you have Axel Shirai's phone number?"

There was a pause. "Umm... no, I don't, but I think Kairi does." Roxas faintly heard Olette asking Kairi about Axel's phone number. He heard Kairi's voice in an answer, but it was indistinct.

"Okay. Do you have a pen and paper?" Roxas opened up his end table's drawer and rummaged about in there. There were old notes, paper clips and gum wrappers, as well as a faded photograph that Roxas had taken with Pence, Olette and Hayner years ago. There was also an old pen that was probably out of ink... but Roxas picked out an old note and tried it and it worked okay after a few scribbles. "Yeah, I got 'em."

"Okay... 487-258-7658..." Olette paused and waited for Roxas to write the numbers down. "Did you get it all?"

Roxas nodded instinctively, but then realized that she wouldn't be able to see it and added, "Yeah, I did. Thanks a ton, Olette. Tell Kairi I said so."

"Is that all you need, Roxas?"

"Yeah. See you Monday."

"Okay, bye!"

Roxas clicked his phone off and stared at the numbers written in clear print on the crumpled paper. He slowly dialed in the number on his cell and stared at it for a moment. It was tough, but he finally summoned the courage and called the number. His heart beat like a drum in his chest.

The bored-sounding voice of Axel answered the phone. "Yes, you've reached the Shirai household, Axel speaking, what can I do for you?" It was less of a question than it was a much-repeated statement.

"Axel, it's... it's Roxas..."

There was a noise of recognition from the other end of the line and then Axel sounded much more interested. "Well well Roxas, I don't remember giving you my home number..."

"Sh-shut up, Axel. I got it from Kairi." Roxas's face turned a pinkish color. Damn that Axel, making him blush so easily!

"Ah, I see. And what brings you to calling me?"

Roxas paused. "...you _know_ why I'm calling."

"Ah, but I don't." Roxas could imagine the playful smile on Axel's face. He was like a cat hunting a mouse. "So please do inform me."

"...it's about last night." _Obviously,_ Roxas added silently.

There was a sigh audible from the other side of the line. "Roxas, you're going to need to tell me what you want to talk about. I can't pick it up when you dance around it like this." But his tone said that he _did_ know, but he wanted Roxas to say.

"When you... when you kissed me... I freaked out and ran outside. But, Axel..." Roxas pulled his legs to his chest and his voice dropped in tone. "I liked it. And I-I think I like _you_."

"Hm, I see," Axel replied, sounding pleased. "I like you too, Roxas. Guess those rumors about me being gay are true, huh?" Axel laughed, but Roxas still felt too nervous to. He didn't know how Axel could keep his cool like he did!

"I-I guess. So, what... what now?"

"Well now, Roxas, I get to ask you on dates. And I get to sneak looks at you in the locker rooms." At this, Roxas's face turned from light pink to a deep red. "And, best of all, I can kiss you."

"Wh-what...and I can't do those things to _you?_"

"I would _love_ it if you did those things, Roxas. Feel free to. I think it's hot if you look at me in the locker room."

Roxas gulped, smiling a little. He just wished he could think straighter around Axel...ha! _Straighter._ Roxas was feeling about as straight as a rainbow right now. "Screw you."

"Oh, I hope you do," Axel purred. He changed the subject from witty banter to something more businesslike just then. "Sorry, Roxas, I can't really talk now...as much as I'd like to. You wanna come over to my house tomorrow to...study?"

Roxas nibbled thoughtfully on his lip. He was sure Axel had more on his mind than simple _studying_. "Sure, I guess. Is noon okay? Or would later be better?"

"Doesn't really matter. Noon is fine." He then said in a more smooth tone, "See you then, Rox," and proceeded to hang up.

Roxas glared at his phone, but then smiled, excited for tomorrow. He felt that he was acting kind of girlish, and would normally have scolded himself for it, but right now he didn't really care about much more than the fact that he would see Axel tomorrow.

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**A/N: **I'm sorry this chapter was so boring. It's upwards of 2,000 words and nothing really _happened._ D: I wanted to make it longer but this was the best spot to end it. The next chapter will be more exciting, I promise! ;-; So leave a review telling me what you like and what you didn't and all that jazz; helps me grow as a writer, you know? See you guys in the next chapter. Shouldn't take too long to write, as long as I can find the inspiration!


	4. Peanut Butter Loving

Some time after Roxas had called Axel and proceeded to sit in his room reading, a thought occurred. _Where did Axel live?_ In Roxas's giddy, girlish phone call and afterglow he'd forgotten to ask the redhead. This led to another call with the same repeated greeting.

"Yeah, Axel, it's Roxas again. I forgot to ask where you lived."

He could hear laughter on the other side of the line, then: "631 Jade Avenue. My house is the brick one with blue shutters." At Roxas's comment (which had been a sarcastic "wow that _totally_ doesn't clash") Axel explained. "My mom picked 'em out, don't ask."

"I see." Roxas smiled, fiddling with the corner of the page in his book. It was numbered 63; Roxas hadn't gotten too far yet, but it seemed like an interesting read. It was fantasy -- something Olette had lent him. _"Twilight,"_ she had called it. _"It's a really good read! I think you'll like it,"_ she had told him. Since there was nothing better to do, Roxas had chosen to read it.

"Yeah, anyway, come by then. Catch you later, Rox."

And so, the next day, Roxas had come by. He stood uneasily in front of the door, having brought study materials and expected to be greeted by Axel's mother or father or brother or someone. After he'd rung the doorbell he was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by the redhead himself.

"I see you're the type who likes to be fashionably late," Axel commented as he stepped aside for Roxas to enter.

"Eeehh, I had a little trouble finding your house," Roxas commented as he took his shoes and socks off. "There's another house with bright blue shutters and brick so I thought it was you."

Axel laughed again; it was soft and pleasing to Roxas's ears. "I didn't think anyone would have the same eye for color that my mother does." He began to lead Roxas into the living room, where there were books and papers and pencils placed.

"Wait, you actually invited me over to _study?_" Roxas asked, surprised. He set his bag down on the couch and looked incredulously at Axel.

Axel returned Roxas's look with a confused one of his own. "Yes, I did. Did you think I had some...else...in mind?" He then gave a devious grin that made Roxas feel the butterflies that had set up shop in his stomach take flight. That grin was the first hint Axel gave.

"Well, y--no! I didn't!" He quickly averted his gaze and changed the subject, clambering onto the couch. "So, um, what do you wanna do first?"

It was then that Axel made his second hint. "_Biology_ is always a good subject." He then flopped down on his couch, taking up two thirds of the couch and resting his head against Roxas's leg.

Roxas coughed. "Uh, how about we start with algebra first?" He received an "Algebra is fine too" and Axel reached over and grabbed two books. Everything then was quiet, save for a few questions from Axel and answers from Roxas -- regarding, of course, _algebra._

Though Roxas had protested before, sort of, he had actually looked forward to more than studying. Bookish though he could occasionally be the blond didn't enjoy studying all the time, and Jesus Christ, he wanted some action...or...something. Even _he _wasn't sure what he wanted.

So it was that this went on for at least a half-hour longer, with Roxas becoming increasingly more bored, until Axel sat up and went to the kitchen for snacks. "You want something?" He asked, lingering at the door.

"Yeah." Roxas immediately stood up and followed Axel into the kitchen, where Axel told him to take anything he wanted -- just not _all_ of his particular poison. Roxas started looking through the fridge and found something he had a particular fondness for: whipped cream in a can. And just to his luck, there were two cans; one was full and unopened, with the other having about a third or fourth left. Roxas plucked it out of the fridge and asked if he could have it. Axel answered yes, his back turned towards Roxas. Apparently he was having some sort of sandwich or something? Roxas couldn't see.

"Come back to the living room when you're ready," he called to Axel as he went back and flopped over the couch, sticking out his tongue and squirting a dollop of whipped cream onto it. Axel came back in shortly after and seated himself on the couch with a...peanut-butter-and-banana-sandwich? What? Roxas frowned.

"Okay, my brother Sora eats burned bagels like they were candy and now you eat..." Roxas gestured vaguely at Axel's food, "...that?"

Axel nodded and took a small bite. "It's good," he said after he swallowed it. "You should try it."

Roxas eyed the food skeptically but held out his hand, into which Axel placed the fruity-nutty sandwich. Roxas squirted a small amount of whipped cream on it --because whipped cream always improved everything, in Roxas's opinion-- and took a bite. It was...weird, to say the least. Sort of salty, thanks to the crunchy peanuts in the peanut butter, but more sweet than anything. The whipped cream was mostly drowned out, but was still sort of noticeable if you looked.

"So? You like it?" Axel asked with a grin. Roxas took another bite in response. "Hey, don't eat it all! It's mine!" Roxas pushed Axel away with his feet, observing the whipped cream can in one hand and munching on the peanut-butter-and-banana-sandwich that was in the other. Axel pulled away, pleased with this defiance. It only made the challenge more satisfying to overcome.

Axel grabbed one of Roxas's feet and pulled Roxas in closer, making the smaller teen drop Axel's sandwich as well as the can of whipped cream -- a dollop of which there remained on Roxas's lip. He looked leeringly at that drop of cream -- and this was the third hint Axel gave.

Of course, at this point, there was no denying what was imminent. Axel pulled Roxas onto his lap, at which point Roxas immediately stiffened, forgetting the sandwich, and immediately pressed his lips against Roxas's, trailing his tongue around the corners of Roxas's mouth and licking up the whipped cream.

Roxas's face lit up in a flush as Axel did this, but he didn't fight it. Instead he pressed back, opening his mouth slightly and let Axel's tongue touch his own, which sent a shiver up Roxas's spine. He felt Axel's hands go up his shirt, and immediately pulled away. They were making out! In Axel's _living room!_ Roxas voiced this comment, murmuring, "What if your _parents_ walk in?" to which Axel immediately shook his head.

"My parents are out at church shit -- they always are on Sundays. Don't worry," he said in a soothing voice. Roxas wasn't prepared for Axel to push him down on the couch, kissing him as they went. Unprepared, yes -- but it was certainly a pleasant surprise. He responded by lifting up Axel's shirt slightly and feeling his smooth chest and stomach. Axel made a small noise of approval and Roxas continued his motions, allowing Axel to do the same. He felt a shudder go up his spine as ran his fingers lightly across Roxas's skin, and Roxas opened his eyes slightly to meet with Axel's green ones. A sudden thought ran through the blonde's mind.

"Axel, I wanna see you... without a shirt," Roxas whispered, suddenly averting his gaze. He had expected Axel to laugh and maybe remove Roxas's own shirt, but instead the redhead moved back and pulled the article off swiftly tossing it aside to reveal a pale, smooth chest -- a chest that Roxas was sure he would see in his dreams. His eyes trailed across it, taking in every detail, and then traveled to the redhead's toned stomach. As he stared he noted the belly button placed perfectly in the center, with a slight muscle definition that was oh-so-delightful. And then it was that Roxas's blue eyes caught sight of the one flaw on Axel's body.

A long, thin, white stripe on Axel's left side. It was slightly jagged in one spot, and ran horizontally from halfway across Axel's stomach to past his hip.

Roxas's eyebrows immediately furrowed; that looked like a scar. Axel moved back down to continue with his actions, but Roxas pushed him away. "Axel, no -- where did you get this?" He asked as he ran a thumb across the stripe.

Axel looked downward, confused at first, but then recognition flickered in his eyes. A grim darkness quickly passed across his face, but then his smile returned and he looked back at Roxas. "Accidents, babe," he purred. "Forget about it." He moved closer once more.

Roxas immediately scooted back. "No, Axel, I wanna know." He paused for a moment, looking serious. "Tell me _now._"

Axel sat back on the couch and sighed. "Fine, but it's a long story." The look on his face made it seem like he wanted to add _and a boner-killer._

"So a while back I went out with this chick -- her name was Larxene." Roxas wasn't too surprised to hear that -- he'd seen Axel with guys and girls and it kinda seemed like he'd tap anyone as long as they were hot. The back of Roxas's head began to warm, thinking that if Axel came across someone more attractive than he was Axel would move on. He was about to say something but Axel cut him off.

"Things were pretty good with her. She was real hot, but the problem was she was kinda...crazy." Axel saw Roxas about to object, and continued. "Not just 'my-ex-girlfriend's-crazy' crazy, but actually not mentally well. I think she was bipolar or some crazy shit, I dunno -- but she wasn't right in the head, that's for fuckin' sure."

Axel paused and adjusted himself on the couch. "She'd get upset at little things, and I mean _really_ upset. Like throw-things-at-me upset." An unreadable look passed over Axel's face as he paused, then said, "But she'd always make up with me, and she would mean it, too. That's why I stayed with her, because she always seemed sorry afterward, so I knew she cared."

Axel then sighed and grabbed his shirt which had landed on the table, sensing that the moment was over. "But it all went bad one morning after I'd stayed over at her place."

"It was while I was making coffee. She was sitting at the table and said something about something--" At which point Roxas laughed and said, "Yeah, totally not vague." Axel looked at him with grim amusement. "I don't remember too much from then. I'll tell you _why_ I don't. Apparently whatever I'd said hadn't flown with Larxene -- pissed her off, you know? So while I had my back turned, making the coffee, she grabbed the scissors or a knife or something and got me right here." Axel placed his right hand over the old wound.

Roxas, meanwhile, had gone from disapproved --of Axel staying with a nutty girl just because making up with her was good-- to wide-eyed shock. "Wh...she did _that_ to you...?" Roxas could hardly believe it; what could he have said that was so nasty?

Axel nodded, a look of hurt in his eyes that refused to meet Roxas's gaze. "Yeah. She cut me pretty deep too, and I ended up lying on the kitchen floor bleeding for a while. I don't think I passed out, but things were kinda out of focus for a little while. I think one of her friends came over and found me there and called an ambulance. When I came around, I had a bunch of stitches in my side and I was in the hospital."

Roxas was, at this point, pretty much speechless. What to say to that? It was even worse than when Axel first came to Roxas's house. It was another awkward situation where a person couldn't really say more than 'gee, sorry it sucked so hard.' Silence fell like a curtain around the two until Roxas finally broke it.

"Uh...wow," he muttered, fiddling his fingers. Axel snorted in response.

"'Wow'? That's _all_ you've got to say?"

"No! But... what happened after that?" Roxas gestured vaguely with his hands.

Axel leaned back on the couch. "Not much. Larxene skipped town after that, and as much as I liked her, I was _not_ willing to go through that shit again. Took weeks to heal up."

Roxas immediately felt a sharp pang of fear, though he tried to stifle it. "You mean, she's still out there?"

"I...yeah, I guess so. But don't worry," Axel quickly insisted. "She's long gone." His expression softened into a smile at Roxas's expression. "C'mon, Rox, don't worry. It's an old story and an old wound."

Roxas crawled into Axel's lap and laid his head on Axel's shoulder. "I don't like seeing wounds on you, Ax...even if they _are _old."

Axel wrapped his arms around the smaller teen. "I know." He put a small peck on Roxas's forehead, bringing a smile to both of their faces.

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**A/N:** Yes, yes, I edited this, if you're curious, taking out that last bit. -ahem- Anyway, epilogue should be up soon, and I'm sorry to anyone who was disappointed by this change.


	5. Epilogue: Snow and Chocolate

To Roxas's relief, Larxene really had been gone. Secretly he'd feared that she might appear and... wreak havoc or something. But instead, there wasn't heads or tails of her, and Roxas relaxed. His relationship with Axel was good, and even though Axel sometimes got a little... _handsy..._ he didn't press the issue. The blond never considered that he might fall for Axel, but now whenever he looked up into his green eyes he felt something inside him just...warm up. Even if Axel did something irritating (which happened more often than Roxas wished) Roxas eventually forgave him. He just couldn't stand to be mad at the elder for long.

All these thoughts and more were running through Roxas's head nearly three months later. Winter had hit, and it hit _hard_, so Roxas had to bring out his pale-toned duffel coat and favorite checkered cap. And though it was cold, it had yet to actually snow yet, so Roxas hadn't rummaged about in his closet for his boots. But the other night the sky had covered the town with a blanket of the white stuff, and the blond had to drag out the snow boots from inside his closet.

But of course, his feet _had _to have grown in the last year, and the boots no longer fit... so Roxas picked the best shoes he could find for surviving through the snow and trudged off to school. It passed uneventfully and the highlight of the day so far had been the fact that Axel slipped a note into his desk, inviting him to meet the redhead on the corner of East 23rd street and Monroe Avenue at three-thirty.

And this was where Roxas was when he was considering his relationship with Axel. Only good things seemed to have come of it, which was something different for the usually-pessimistic blond. There were a lot of little, nagging doubts he had... including the fact that Axel seemed to enjoy being late for things, and Roxas grumbled a small curse about this, adjusting his checkered beanie and blowing on his hands. His feet were freezing! His hands were cold! His nose felt like it was an icicle--

And then there was a hand covering his eyes.

Roxas jolted in surprise, letting out a small noise as he ducked downwards and spun away from the stranger. He was met with laughter and when he laid his eyes on the perpetrator, he bristled with indignation, but it was squashed some by the simple fact of who had scared him. He gave a small huff. "Don't _surprise me_ like that, Axel..."

"Sorry babe, I didn't mean to scare ya like that." The redhead shifted his weight onto his other foot, holding out a hand towards Roxas. In that hand was a foam cup with steam rising from the top. "Here. A present, since I'm late."

The blond took the cup from Axel and sipped tentatively, a smile spreading across his features. Hot chocolate... the perfect thing for a wintry day such as this. "How unexpectedly thoughtful," he muttered, to which Axel's grin seemed to widen -- if it were possible. But that grin, and those eyes... they seemed to crush some of the doubts Roxas had about the relationship. Axel slung an arm around Roxas's shoulders, pulling the blond close and sipping at his own warm drink.

"You know I'm awesome like that. So, where to?"

"Anywhere is fine, as long as it's warm."

_...and as long as I'm with you._

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**A/N:** I...I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the lack of updates, I'm sorry for the cheesy cop-out epilogue ending, I'm just... I'm sorry. I really did have more planned for this story, but God, I just lost all interest in it. I really hate that that happens...but it does, and it happened for me. I didn't want to leave this story unfinished, though, so I wrote this to give it some semblance of an ending.

So thank you to everyone who reviewed this story, thank you to everyone who read this story, and thanks to _everyone_ who had patience with me. And please -- if you see issues with this epilogue, with any of the story, feel free to critique me about it. I need the help, trust me.


End file.
